By 2050, silt buildups at 3,700 big dams throughout India might cause them to lose up to 26% of the capacity they formerly had for storing water. According to a recent research by the UN University’s Institute for Water, Environment and Health, global dam storage capacity might decrease by 25%.
16% of the initial capacity has already been lost, according to a UN study that examined data from more than 47,000 dams across 150 nations. According to the report, by 2050, the United States will have lost 34% of its capacity, while Brazil will likely have lost 23% and China will likely have lost 20%.
According to a UN study, blocked silt has already robbed 50,000 major dams throughout the world of between 13% and 19% of their total initial storage capacity. The University forecasted total reservoir storage losses by nation, region, and the world by applying previously estimated storage loss rates to big dams in 150 nations.
Vladimir Smakhtin, director of UNU-INWEH, said: ‘I would suggest that the issue we should now be addressing is what are the alternatives to dams – including in generating power – knowing that they are being phased out’. The study predicts that by 2050, water storage capabilities in the United Kingdom, Panama, Ireland, Japan, and Seychelles would have decreased by between 35% and 50%. The five least impacted nations, with losses of less than 15% by the middle of the century, are Bhutan, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Guinea, and Niger.
‘Irrigation, electricity production, and water delivery are only a few of the areas of national economies that will face difficulties as a result of the reduction in storage available by 2050 in all nations and regions. Storage losses due to sedimentation won’t be made up by the new dams that are being built or planned. This report issues a warning on a looming worldwide water issue that might have severe development ramifications’, co-author of the study Dr. Duminda Perera made a remark.
According to a 2015 analysis by India’s Central Water Commission, of 141 large reservoirs older than 50 years, 25% have already lost at least 30% of their original storage capacity. In terms of Europe, the initial storage capacity of the 6,651 big dams located in 42 different European nations was 895 billion cubic metres. According to the report, the region has already lost 19% of that volume and would lose up to 21% by 2030 and 28% by 2050. Researchers also pointed out that site-specific variations in reservoir sedimentation rates and related storage losses exist across different geographical areas.
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